City
Epaper

Hong Kong: Pro-democracy bloc sweeps district polls

By IANS | Updated: November 25, 2019 13:15 IST

Pro-democracy candidates on Monday claimed a resounding victory in all Hong Kong districts, winning at least 387 of 452 district council seats.

Open in App

Prominent figures of the city's long-running protests became councillors, making it clear how the general population supported the protesters.

Jimmy Sham, co-ordinator of the Civil Human Rights Front, which organised the largest demonstrations in Hong Kong's history last June and Andrew Chin, from the Power for Democracy platform, both became councillors, Efe news reported.

Both have been attacked during Hong Kong's protests, with Sham assaulted twice and Chin being bitten in the ear earlier this month by a man shouting pro-China slogans.

After his win in Lek Yuen district, Sham told the media that local elections were "a referendum" reflecting public opinion and its result was not a triumph for him, but for all of Hong Kong.

Sham was attacked with a baseball bat and a knife in August by two masked men, although he emerged unharmed. In October he was beaten by four people carrying hammers and wrenches, causing him head and arm injuries.

At least nine pro-democracy candidates who were victims of some form of attack during the last six months of street protests have won seats in the elections.

In the pro-China block, which had suffered a hard setback by securing only 59 seats at 9 a.m. local time, Junius Ho, widely disliked by protesters, failed to retain his seat, sparking cheers among pro-democracy movement voters.

According to his detractors, Junius a lawyer aligned with Beijing has links with local mafias, who indiscriminately attacked people in subway stations of tourist areas to sow chaos during protests.

Junius was also attacked in early November by a person who approached him to take a picture but instead stabbed him with a cold weapon.

Kelvin Lam, who replaced prominent activist Joshua Wong in the pro-democracy side's leadership, also won his seat.

Wong is one of the most visible leaders of the democracy movement born in 2014 through the Umbrella Revolution and the only candidate authorities prevented from contesting the elections.

Wong said on Sunday before voting that his disqualification proved the city's elections are manipulated by China's Communist Party, but that he'd continue fighting for the rights to self-determination of Hong Kong people.

The large majority of pro-democracy councillors is important because it will allow larger representation in the 1,200-member committee that will elect the next head of the Hong Kong Executive in 2020, traditionally dominated by Beijing's allies.

( With inputs from IANS )

Tags: Hong KongJunius HoJoshua Wongchinabeijing
Open in App

Related Stories

InternationalTyphoon Ragasa Live Tracker Map: Deadly Cyclonic Storm Nears Vietnam After Wreaking Havoc in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan; Check Real-Time Status

CricketHong Kong Sixes 2025: Dinesh Karthik Appointed Captain of Team India

CricketBAN vs HK 2025 LIVE Cricket Streaming: When and Where to Watch Asia Cup 2025 Match Between Bangladesh and Hong Kong?

CricketBangladesh vs Hong Kong, Asia Cup 2025: Likely Playing XI, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Pitch Report, Weather Forecast and Other Stats

CricketRashid Khan-Led Afghanistan Beat Hong Kong by 94 Runs in Asia Cup 2025 Opener (VIDEO)

International Realted Stories

InternationalTrump calls government shutdown 'unprecedented opportunity' to fire federal workers

InternationalHungary PM accuses EU of presenting war strategy to defeat Russia

InternationalIndia, China to resume direct flights by late October; decision to contribute to normalisation of bilateral exchanges

InternationalAbhorrent and deeply distressing: Israel condemns stabbing attack near synagogue in UK

InternationalIndiGo to resume flights between India and China after five years